Britain’s Shire Plc CEO, Angus Russell, said that that one of the company main goals on the long-term it’s to double their sales on biological drugs for rare diseases. In charge of that strategy, will be the Human Genetic Therapies (HGT) unit, developer of that kind of treatments. Russell remarks were made at the Reuters Health Summit, in New York.

The company is currently best known as a global leader in treating attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), like the blockbuster Adderall XR. Shire's current HGT portfolio consists of Elaprase, a drug for Hunter syndrome; Replagal, for Fabry disease; and Firazyr, for hereditary angioedema.

The company is also developing a pipeline of newer products, including velaglucerase for Gaucher disease, which could get to market in 2010, and Zymenex for metachromatic leukodystrophy, expected to launch around 2011.

Rare diseases pathologies affect less than 50,000 patients a year.

Human Genetic Therapies would be a key driver by 2015. By the end of the year HGT sales are expected to total around $500 million, equivalent to some 15 percent of total Shire revenue, but will exceed $1 billion by 2015, by which time the business will be roughly the same size as its established hyperactivity drug franchise.

Rivals in the space include Genzyme Corp and Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc.